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Builders See Higher Costs as Top Problem in 2013

Washington, DC, Feb. 11, 2013 -- According to the latest survey conducted as part of the monthly NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index, more than three-fourths of the builders expect building materials prices to be one of their significant problems in 2013, up substantially from 46% in 2012 and 33% in 2011.

Second is cost/availability of labor, a significant problem 51% of builders expect to face in 2013, up from 30% who said they faced the problem in 2012 and only 13% in 2011.

Nearly half of the builders expect cost/availability of developed lots to be a significant problem. This is also up from 24% who said they faced the problem in 2012 and 21% in 2011.

Also, 42% of the builders expect costs of health insurance be a significant problem in 2013. Like many of the cost categories further down on the chart, problems with health insurance were slightly less common among builders in 2012 than in 2011, but expectations indicate this small improvement is likely to be reversed in 2013.